Furnace.



A. G. SHERMAN.

FURNAGE.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 21, 1914.

1,1 32,803. Patented Mar. 23, 1915.

5 Fi l.

INVENTUR ATTURNEYE.

THE NORRIS 'PETERS COA. PHoT0-LlTHo.. WASHINCVON. D r` .ALBERT G.SHERMAN, or BUFFALO, NEW YORK.

FURNACE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application led September 21, 1914. Serial No. 862,654.

' T0 all whom t may concern.'

Y though the same may also be used for other purposes. c

It is the object of this invention to provide a furnace of thischaracter in which complete combustion of the solid matter as well asthe gaseous matter generated from the fuel and the smoke issuingtherefrom is effected, thereby economizing in fuel, but also avoidingdischarging smoke into the surrounding external atmosphere.

In the accompanying drawings: Figure 1 is a vertical longitudinalsection of a furnace embodying my improvements. Fig. Q is a horizontalsection of the same taken in line 2 2, Fig. l. Fig. 3 is a fragmentarysection taken in line 3-3, Fig. l.

Similar characters of reference indicate corresponding parts throughoutthe several views. Y

1 represents the lire place or box of the furnace which is provided inits front 'wall 2 with one or more fuel inlet openings 3 each of whichis normally closed by a door 4. At the rear end of the fire place isarranged a rear transverse wall 5 which is provided in its upper partwith one or more longitudinal gas passages or openings 6 for conductingheated. and burning gases or combustible matter generated in the lfireplace. Although the number of these passages in the rear wall may varyit has been found satisfactory to employ two of them and arrange thesame horizontally and transversely side by side, as shown in Figs. 2 and3. The top of the ire place is closed by the front part of the boilershell 7 extending over the same while the bottom of the re place isformed by the grate 8 which c separates the same from the ash pit 9arranged below the grate. The front-wall of the furnace and ash pit isprovided with an i ash outlet opening 10 leading to the ash pit whichopening may be closed by a door 11 in the usual and well known manner.

12 represents an arch arranged centrally in the upper part of the fireplace between the front and rear walls thereof and extend- Patented Mai.2a, 1915.

ing transversely from one longitudinal wall of the re place to the otherand fitting with` .its upper side against the underside of the boilershell. The lower edge of the lire arch is separatedby an interveningpassage from the top of the lineor substantially so with the upper edgeof the fuel inlet opening 3 and the'lower-v most parts of the gas inFigs. 1 and 3. p

Arranged horizontally and lengthwise inV the upper part of the lireplace are one or more air supply pipes 13 each of which extends throughtheV front wall of there place and the arch and opens at its front endto the outer atmosphere whileits rear end opens into the fire placebetween the rear wall thereof andthe arch. Each of the air supply pipesis preferably arranged axially passages 6, as shown grate and isarranged on a'- 1n line with and terminatesin front of one of the gasopenings in the rear wall of the fire place, as shown in the drawings.If desired air may be forcibly injected from the supply pipe rinto thefire place and the companion gas passage 6 by discharging a jet of steaminwardly through the same, this beingV Y preferably effected by means ofa steam supply pipe 15 having a discharge nozzle 14 projectingrearwardly into the respective air supply plpe, ing controlled by avalve 16 arranged in the steam supply pipe.

In rear of the fire place is arranged the combustion chamber 17 in whichthe underside of the rear part of the boiler shell and the steam forthis purpose befthe lower part of its rear head are exposed. l

Withinv this combustion chamber are arranged the means for banding ordeflecting the heated gases and combustible matter issuing from the gaspassages pose of thoroughly mixing this matter and causing the same tobe completely burned or ignited before reaching the flues of the boilershell. These baffling or deflecting means may be variously constructedbut fas shown in the drawings the same comprise two pairs of deflectorsor baffles 18, 18, 19, 19, the pairs being arranged one in front of theother in a direction lengthwise of the furnace. The deflectors 1'8 ofthe front pair are arranged vertically and spaced from the rear wall ofthe fire place and converge from the side walls of the combustionchamberrearwardly toward the center of the 6 for the pury loo same but 'areseparated at their vopposingv i communicate with the uptake 22 of theboiler which leads to a chimney or stack extending to the outeratmosphere in the usual and well known manner.

lVhile the coal or other fuel is arranged on the grate within the fireplace between the front wall thereof and the arch the same becomesheated and coked so that more or less of the gas in the fuel is givenoff and passes rearwardly, under the arch and thence upwardly andrearwardly through the gas passages or openings 6 and into thecombustion chamber. As the fuel is pushed from the front end toward therear end of the grate between the rear wall of the lire place and thearch the same becomes incandescent and gives off further combustiblegases which pass upwardly and rearwardly through the gas openings orpassages 1n the rear wall of the lire place. As the combustible gasesrise in the rear part of the fire place the same are mixed with the airwhich is supplied to the same by the air pipes either by means of anatural draft from the outer ends toward the inner ends of these pipesor by the addition thereto of a forced draft which is produced by thejets of steam directed by the nozzles 14 inwardly through the air pipes.lnasmuch as each of the air pipes and its steam nozzle is arrangedaxially in line with the central part of one of the gas passages 6 theair, or air and steam, as the case may be are delivered into the centerof the stream of combustible gases passing rearwardly through each ofthe gas passages, thereby producing a mixture of these Combustible gaseswith the air and steam similar to a Bunsen burner, whereby i thecombustible elements contained in the gas are thoroughly aerated and putin the best condition for consuming or burning all of the combustiblematter therein so that practically no smoke is present in these hotgases as they pass through the combustion chamber and enter the rearends of the flues of the boiler.

As the burned aerated combustible gases issue from the rear ends of thegas passages 6 in the rear wall of the fire place the same strike therearwardly diverging front sides of the lirst pair of deflectors orbaffles `which are arranged in line with these gas passages orvopenings, whereby these gases issuing from the two openings 6 anddirected toward each other are caused to impinge against each other inpassing rearwardly through the central passage between these deflectors.The`gases by this means become further intermingled and put intocondition for further burning any combustible elements contained thereinand producing an intensely hot flame or stream of fire, and the flame iscaused to flatten vertically in the manner of two jets of gasapproaching each other at an angle like that commonly practiced inacetylene burners. After the flame passes the rear ends to the frontpair of deflectors the lsame tends to spread slightly but is againconverted into a vertically flattened condition by engagement with therearwardly converging front sides of the rear pair of deflectors so thatany remaining combustible matter in the gases is burned and onlyintensely heated gases pass from the rear end of the combustion chamberforwardly through the flues of the boiler and practically no smokeescapes from the front ends of the tubes through the uptake. By thismeans of aerating the combustible Agases generated from the fuel in thelire place a thorough and complete combustion of all the fuel elementsis obtained before the hot gases enter the flues of the boiler, therebyenabling these heated 'gases to operate with the highest efficiency uponthe water contained within the boiler shell and enabling steam to begenerated with a minimum expenditure of fuel. By this means greatereconomy in the use of the fuel is possible and the objectionabledelivery of smoke into the outer atmosphere, as is now commonly thecase, is avoided.

Owing to the admixture of the air with the combustible gases in the rearpart of the lire place between the rear wall thereof and the arch anintensely hot flame is produced in this region which, in the absence ofany provision to prevent it, would unduly heat or burn that part of theboiler shell immediately above the same. ln order to avoid this thatpart of the under side of the boiler shell which extends over the fireplace between the rear wall thereof and the arch is provided with aprotecting covering 23 of refractory material, such as lire clay,asbestos or the like, whereby the heating effect of the burning gases isdistributed more uniformly over the entire underside of the i boilershell and undue or irregular heating of the same is avoided as well asany injurious effects which otherwise might follow from the lack ofuniformity in the heating of the boiler shell.

My improved furnace is comparatively simple and inexpensive inconstruction, the same can be easily installed and all. of its parts arereadily accessible for inspection and repairs.

I claim as my invention:

1. A furnace comprising a fire place provided with a front wall and arear wall having a longitudinal opening, a boiler arranged over the fireplace, an arch extending transversely across the fire place between saidfront and rear walls and projecting downwardly from said boiler, and aconduit for conducting air from the exterior of the furnace through saidarch and discharging the same from the rear side of said arch into thespace between the latter and said rear wall but not in directcommunication with the space in front of said arch.

2. A furnace comprising a fire place having a front wall and a rear wallprovided with two; openings arranged transversely side by side, an archarranged transversely in the upper part of said fire place between thefront and rear walls thereof, horizontal air supply pipes extendinglengthwise of the furnace through said front wall and arch and openingat their front ends to the atmosphere while the rear ends thereof openinto the fire place between the arch and said rear wall and each of saidair pipes being arranged in line with one` of said openings in said rearwall, a combustion chamber arranged in rear of the fire place, and twoupright defiectors arranged in the combustion chamber between the frontand rear ends thereof and converging rearwardly from the side wallsthereof while their rear inner edges are separated by an interveningpassage.

3. A furnace comprising a ire place having a front wall and a rear wallprovided with two openings arranged transversely side by side, an archarranged transversely in the upper part of said fire place between thefront and rear walls thereof, horizontal 'air supply pipes extendinglengthwise of the furnace through said front wall and arch and openingat their front ends to the atmosphere while the rear ends thereof openinto the fire place between the arch and said rear wall and each of saidair pipes being arranged in line with one of said openings in said rearwall, a combustion chamber arranged in rear of the fire place, and twopairs of upright defiectors arranged one behind the other in saidcombustion chamber between the front and rear ends thereo-f, the membersof each pair'converging rearwardly from the side walls of the combusarchand opening at their front ends to the,

atmosphere while the rear ends thereof open into the fire place betweenthe arch and said rear wall and each of said air pipes being arranged inline with one of said openings in said rear wall, a combustion chamberarranged in rear of the fire place, two upright defiectors arranged inthe combustion chamber between the front and rear ends thereof andconverging rearwardly from the side walls thereof while their rear inneredges are separated by an intervening passage, and a boiler arrangedover said iire place and combustion chamber.

5. A furnace comprising a fire place having a front wall and a rear wallprovided with two openings arranged transversely side by side, an archarranged transversely in the upper part of said fire place between thefront and rear walls thereof, horizontal air supply pipes extendinglengthwise of the furnace through said front wall and arch and openingat their front ends to the atmosphere while therear ends thereof openinto the lire place between the arch and said rear wall and each of saidair pipes being arranged in line with one of said openings Y in saidrear wall, a combustion chamber arranged in rear of the ire place, twoupright deiectors arranged in the combustion chamber between the frontand rear ends thereof and convergingl rearwardly from the side wallsthereof while their rear inner edges are separated by an interveningpassage, a boiler arranged over said fire place and coinbustion chamber,and a protecting covering applied to the underside of said boilerbetween the arch and the rear wall of the firev place. V

Witness my hand this 19th day of September, 1914.

ALBERT e. SHERMAN.

AWitnesses:

THEO. L. PoPP, E. M. GRAHAM.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for ve cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents.

Washington, D. C.

